


The Chosen Vessel and the Beast's Warning

by ArthaDemon



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Game)
Genre: Adding some of my own concepts, And some of my characters and concepts from my greater universe that fit in very well, Canon Divergance, Character Reflection, Child Death, Drabble, Other, Short Story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-19
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-07-08 16:07:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19872343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArthaDemon/pseuds/ArthaDemon
Summary: The Pale King finally finds a vessel that he deems to be pure enough for his attempt at sealing the Radiance to save Hallownest, but none of this is easy. It never has been. Only the "No Cost Too Great" mantra he has been repeating in his mind since this all began keeps him on task. He receives a grave warning from the beast that inhabits the Abyss.(Some short stories exploring some things that happen before the beginning of the game, adding some of my own concepts in. This will consist of drabbles from the Hollow Knight's childhood, some character exploration for the Pale King, and other stuff that happened before the game. Currently, there are two connected short stories. The second refers to the first. Enjoy!)





	1. The Chosen Vessel and the Beast's Warning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Pale King finally finds a vessel that he deems to be pure enough for his attempt at sealing the Radiance to save Hallownest, but none of this is easy. It never has been. Only the "No Cost Too Great" mantra he has been repeating in his mind since this all began keeps him on task. He receives a grave warning from the beast that inhabits the Abyss.

The rolling crunch of a great door opening and the quiet sound of a bug's feet rang through the emptiness of the Abyss and echoed around and around. Footsteps going down, down down a spiral staircase, towards a small sealed cavern near the shore of the Void Sea. Within, was the next batch of Vessels, who were due to hatch the day before. He had waited a day to make sure they had all hatched. It was time to select the ones to take with him to the White Palace, to test. So far, every batch had been a disappointment. They weren’t hollow enough. Not a single one of them. Even so, he always picked a few from each clutch, and if they didn’t succeed… they died. There were already piles of their remains at the bottom of the Abyss. The Pale King was starting to give up hope, though had been doing this for so long that what moral compass he'd once had was gone. A part of him knew it was wrong, but he had become far too detached. 

_I feel like a vessel myself, so numb have I become to what should be a parent’s worst nightmare,_ He thought to himself, sneering bitterly behind his pristine mask. It had hurt, the first time the eggs had actually hatched instead of being consumed by the void and dying. He wanted to scoop up every hatchling, take it in, save it from a terrible fate. He didn't want to do this. But he had to. For his kingdom. For his people.  
  
Every time he heard the sickening crunch and a voiceless cry of pain and terror that was so tangible he could feel it in the air, it felt like an arrow straight to his heart. He had to remind himself the creatures that would have been his children were dead, changed, corrupted and replaced by the Void. They were essentially animated corpses… even if they did seem alive.

At first, it seemed like the pain of child after child failing, dying, falling into the darkness beneath would never dull. The mantra of “No cost too great” barely helped. It still felt wrong. The White Lady refused to be anywhere near during the tests, never wanted to speak about it. He could tell it upset her, too. _No cost too great._

Only… after enough death, after losing enough of his own offspring… he simply became numb. Their voiceless cries, their little, shattered bodies falling into the abyss below, their tiny hands reaching to him as they desperately tried to call out to their parents to save them just ... stopped hurting. A mind could only take so much emotional pain before simply shutting down. So many times, he’d wanted to stop this. He wished he could stop this. But such wishful thinking had died long ago. He had already come so far, to stop now would be a shame to those who had already died. _No cost too great._

As he strode into the hatching chamber, the great Wyrm had no need of a lumafly lantern, for his own shell gave off a light of its own, though even that did not reach far, absorbed by the all-encompassing darkness that Void created. Normally, hatchlings could be heard squeaking and peeping for their parents if left alone. He was only greeted with dead silence as he opened the door into the brood chamber. He was not surprised, however, because none of the Vessels had voices. They couldn't call out and squeak. As he passed through the door, he heard the skittering of tiny feet. He was swarmed with thirty two tiny hatchlings, bouncing around his feet, trying to climb his glowing robe in joy. He was their parent! They recognized their parent! In that moment that was supposed to warm every new parent’s heart, he felt nothing. _No cost too great._

They all recognized him, every single one. They were visibly excited and happy, clinging to his white robes, even perching themselves in his crown of horns when they managed to make it up there, too innocent to know the possible horror that could await them. They would have been squeaking, if they had voices.

They all had minds. They all scrambled over eachother to try to get close to their parent. He brushed them aside. He got to work deciding which ones to take with him, though he knew it would just end in their deaths. He had stopped taking the entire clutch up a long time ago. Those he did not choose, he shooed out of the hatching chamber to prepare it for the next batch of eggs. He never knew what became of them after that. He wasn’t supposed to care, even if he sometimes found himself sparing a glance to see if any of them lived. _No cost too great._

He was about to pick up the first of his chosen hatchlings, a tiny vessel with two pronged horns that seemed stronger than the rest, thinking maybe strength would make the difference, when something caught his eye. In the back corner, the gleaming shell of a single vessel could be spotted reflecting back his own pale glow amid the discarded egg shells, simply looking at him. They were not much different than the rest, with three little nubs on their horns, empty eyes observing him. They did not move towards the Pale King, showing neither excitement, nor fear. Their empty pits of eyes seemed to be trained on him, though it was hard to tell for sure.

 _Have I finally done it? Have I finally created a pure vessel?_ He wondered to himself. _Is this going to finally end? Is the Kingdom finally going to be saved?_

In disbelief, he set down the vessel he had scooped up, feeling its disappointment as it tried to cling to his hand. He shook it off, barely registering the soft thunk of its tiny body hitting the ground. It got back up to follow him again, though he ignored it as he crouched down and picked the quiet vessel up. It seemed to look at him, though its gaze was so empty he couldn’t read what it was thinking. If it was thinking anything at all. The little vessel fixated its attention on that beautiful white glow before it, not taking its gaze off of it. It was so very fixated on that strange glow that it did not even react to being picked up. It recognized its parent, though was far too distracted by how beautiful its parent was. 

“Do you even recognize me?” He asked, softly. It turned quietly to face him at the sound of the words, but he couldn’t tell if it was recognition… or simply reacting to the stimulus of his voice.

He had mixed feelings. He had finally reached his goal. A pure vessel… but, the one he would raise, having no feelings. It wouldn't be his son. He couldn't raise it as his son. It was a being that was hollow and empty without any emotion. That was its nature, what it was created for. What itw as meant to be. Why, then, did it hurt so much? He took a deep breath that shuddered very slightly, but quickly regained his composure.

He didn’t even bother to select any others. He placed all hope in this one. All hope that no more of his children would need to be sacrificed. That this dark and painful ritual didn't have to go on any longer. He simply left the rest where they were, ignoring the one with the two pronged horns that kept trying to follow him.

He had just placed his foot on the first step of the great staircase that lead up to the top of the Abyss, when the sound of chains dragging and great claws clicking on the ground caught his attention. Behind a broken wall, three pairs of eyes gazed out at him, glowing white amidst a massive silhouette that was somehow darker than the darkness behind it. Aside from that, very little of the beast could be seen, but it was not like the beasts of Hallownest. It was not a bug.. not a spider. Nothing he recognized, though tendrils surrounding its form reminded him of the tendrils in the void that would lash out at anything that came too close.  
  
Even with his power, even with its chains preventing the thing from reaching him, the great Beast of the Abyss made him nervous. It always had, since he discovered it chained down there, and realized that it’s blood could hold the key to animating the Vessels. Since he had put two and two together and realized that it was the thing referred to as "Xonoth" or "The Beast of the Abyss" in the ancient tablets he had found in the remains of the ancient civilization had once been there even before he built Hallownest.

It had worked, a moment of triumph for him. Instead of all the eggs placed down there simply dying from the Void filling and consuming their frail little bodies before they even had a chance to hatch, a single drop of the Beast’s blood applied to the eggs would disappear into their shells like a sponge soaking up water and join with the void flowing within, thus allowing the void to become animated. Alive, even. Having visited the beast many times to harvest its blood, he managed to keep his composure.

He didn't even realize that he was holding the chosen vessel so close to his chest, or that it had dozed off, lulled and comforted by his warmth, exhausted from the work of hatching out of its egg.

“ **So you come once again to choose which of your children dies, and which of your children may live.** ” The voice rumbled, seeming to make the ground, and very air quiver and shake. Felt in the Pale King's chest, as much as heard, thoroughly unnatural and unsettling. The disappointment in it was palpable.

“I have finally created what I feel is a Perfect Vessel.” The Pale King said, voice tight. Perhaps angry, but still perfectly composed.

“ **Remember, Pale One,** ” The great beast rumbled. Its mouth flashed white with each word, power vibrating from its form. “ **When you give something life… it will never remain hollow. Life exists to grow, to learn, to become. Even if that poor child manages to survive your brutal test, it will never be truly hollow. In the end, it will fail. It will be overcome. You can not hope to contain the Radiance in this manner.** ”

“No. This is the one.” The Pale King insisted. It had to be the one. He refused to believe otherwise. He refused to let the Beast’s words sway him.

“ **Your voice sounds as hollow as you believe that little one is. I almost pity you, Pale thing.** ” the Beast rumbled, but said no more. It sounded almost tired. It knew the King would not listen to it. The Pale King was about to retort, when the sound of dragging chains receded into the darkness, leaving the Pale King alone with his thoughts, and the Vessel sleeping on his chest. He started to ascend the stairs, having to carefully leap over sections that had been eaten away by the Void and fallen to rubble below, with flicks of his glowing white wings.

“No cost too great.” He whispered aloud. His voice grew stronger as he ascended further and further. He looked down at the vessel, which had woken up, though was simply looking out into the darkness quietly.

“No mind to think. No will to break. No voice to cry suffering. Born of God and Void. You are the Hollow Knight.” There was no response to his voice aside from its tiny head turning towards him again. Another sweep of his glimmering wings, and he landed on the platform that lead out of that dreadful, dark place. He placed the vessel down, not even noticing that the stubborn one with the two-pronged horns had followed him up to the top.

The chosen vessel followed him, transfixed and fascinated by the light that came off of him, though it noticed its sibling not far behind after it heard its tiny claws scrabbling on the edge of the ledge. Pausing, it looked back at its sibling with a very slight tilt of its head, though turned moments later to follow its parent obediently. If only it had known the terrible fate that lay ahead. In its innocence, it placed all trust in its parent.  
  
The Pale King heard its little steps halt for that brief moment, but before he even though to glance back, its steps started up once again, following him out of the Abyss and through the door that would later seal the abyss off for good. The great door slammed shut behind them, as the vessel with the two-pronged horns plummeted into the darkness upon losing its grip on the ledge. He picked the chosen vessel up, and walked quietly towards the White Palace, his mind a storm of thoughts … and, for once, a delicate ray of hope even as the Beast's words repeated themselves over and over in his mind.


	2. Not so Hollow After All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Hollow Knight faces the reality of their situation on the last day before their Sealing, and the Pale King comes to a startling realization... but it's too late. There's no turning back now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am using an older concept for the Void from my own writings and modifying it to fit in with for the Void in use in Hallownest. When the Vessels were created using a drop of blood from the Beast of the Abyss Xonoth, the Void mimicked what the hatchlings would have had, and even allowed them to grow and live as normal beings would. The anatomy of the Vessels in this AU will be following this: https://www.deviantart.com/artha-demon/art/Khula-Reference-804958292 (This character does not appear in this story, however, just using him as an example of Vessel anatomy)
> 
> Note that this will not directly follow the game canon, and will have several concepts from my expanded universe, but I am making sure everything works together nicely.

The Vessel’s throat felt tight, even if they weren’t even supposed to have a throat. They wanted to reach up and loosen their cloak and adjust their shining, silvery armor, but fidgeting was not ok. At l least, not for them. They had to remain poised and regal, especially with the entire kingdom of Hallownest looking up to them in hope and expectation. Instead, they carefully twisted a small piece of cloth around and around their fingers out of sight under their pristine white cloak to keep themself as grounded as possible. They could already feel themself becoming overwhelmed, but did their best to ignore it. The little strip of cloth helped, though, for the moment.

For once, it was proving a bit handy to not have a voice. They knew they would never be able to articulate words if they had to. Especially not in front of such a crowd. While they could understand words, thinking with them was a bit more difficult. Even so, their mind was a storm of anxious thoughts, spinning around and around endlessly.

They could hear their father’s voice droning on and on through the steady drumming of rain all around beside them as they stood like a tall, elegant shining statue, head high, positioned much like the statue behind them. 

On the outside, the Pure Vessel, the Hollow Knight, looked perfectly collected and calm, pristine. Like a regal and beautiful statue, unmoving, shining as bright as the hope in the eyes of every onlooker, raindrops clinging to their form like sparkling diamonds reflecting back the glowing radiance of the Pale King.

The Kingdom, they knew, depended completely on them being pure and hollow. For a moment, they tried to focus on their father’s voice. 

The words still slipped past them, because the Vessel was doing their best to keep their cool. The King glanced towards the Hollow Knight briefly, though they weren’t sure what it meant, if it meant anything at all. Reading emotions was not their strong point. Neither was showing emotion, for that matter, though that was a good thing at the moment.

 _Do not feel… Do not think… Do not dream … Must be perfect… must make Father proud… Keep it together… Keep it together…_ Became a mantra in the Pure Vessel’s mind, repeated again and again to drown out their own anxiety as they felt the cloth between their fingers rip under the strength of their hands and claws. They tried to keep their focus on keeping their posture straight and regal in spite of the tightness in their chest and the sinking, nauseated feeling in the pit of their stomach. 

The final conclusion of the speech did get a reaction out of the Hollow Knight, despite their best efforts.

“Through its sacrifice, Hallownest will last eternal!” The King said, his voice strong and clear, echoing through the City of Tears with such surety and such strength, that it almost made the Hollow Knight feel slightly less afraid for a brief moment. Cheers and applause erupted from the crowd of bugs there to witness that historical speech. The Pale King and the Hollow Knight rarely appeared in public, but this was a special occasion. Bugs of every shape and size had come from every corner of Hallownest to view the speech, to finally see the perfect vessel that would be their savior.

Fortunately, nobody seemed to notice the small subtle turn of the Hollow Knight’s head as they heard the conclusion of their father's speech. They then realized this was their que. They stepped forward, bowing their elegant head towards the crowd, then brandishing their shining nail, just as they had been taught. They twirled it around their lithe form with precision born from years of practice, before setting it, point down, on the stage with another dip if their head, causing the cheering to erupt anew until the entire town square practically shook from the thunderous applause and joyous cheering of countless bugs.

Speech concluded, it was time to board the tram back to the white palace. The Hollow Knight briefly wished they could ride the Stags, but the King never utilized them. They were relieved that the guards were keeping the townspeople back. The Hollow Knight was thankful of that. They were not used to being touched at the best of times, but their current over-stimulation would likely make it even worse.

It took all the restraint they had to not jerk away when they felt one of the accompanying royal retainers reach out a hand to guide them into the tram. The Pale King sat gracefully, as the Hollow Knight sat beside him. The nausea in the pit of their stomach didn’t go away, though they managed to distract themself from it as they watched the scenery go by through the tram window while absently half-listening to the quiet chatter between the guards and the royal retainers who had come along for the public speech. 

Once they arrived back at the White Palace, they heard the Pale King address two of the royal retainers. “Take the Pure Vessel to its bedchamber.” He commanded in his ever smooth voice. A soothing tone that vibrated with power.

The Vessel followed the servants obediently, keeping their regal pose, the same pose they always had to keep when in the presence of anybody else. Their bedchamber was a welcome reprieve from all their duties and appearances. The one place they didn’t feel like they had to be perfect all the time. 

As the door to their bedchamber closed, the Hollow Knight quickly removed their armor and pure white cloak, dumping it unceremoniously on the floor, before going to sit on the edge of their bed. They knew they should probably place it on the armor stand, but they couldn’t bring themselves to care at the moment. Later. They’d just do it later. They need to get ahold of themself first. As they sat there quietly, the full gravity of their situation finally hit. 

One day. Just one more day and… just thinking about it filled them with anxiety that made their chest tighten until it hurt, a pressure that would make it impossible to breathe, if they actually breathed at all. Not needing to breathe, however, didn’t make the terrible ache any less unpleasant. After a few minutes, they finally managed to stop shaking, though they felt weak all over. They finally stood to address the armor laying on the floor. Absolute perfection was expected of them, always. They hoped that having something to do would get their mind off of their fast approaching fate, too.

The nausea that had been nagging since the speech began suddenly came to a head from the sudden movement. They found themself hunching over in a corner. Once again, it was almost a boon not to have a voice, because the last thing they wanted was somebody hearing them, and finding out that the Pure Vessel was a complete anxious mess.

The only sound they produced was a very quiet 'gak' , despite the way their midsection heaved, staining the fine white carpet with a very obvious black mess. They didn’t need to eat, so it just seemed to be the Void’s malleable nature manifesting itself as a visible sign of their anxiety. Which, unfortunately, stuck out like a sore thumb in the otherwise neat and tidy, and very white, room.

The Hollow Knight stayed leaned over for a few moments, trying to calm down enough that movement wouldn't trigger another episode, before the sound of footsteps heading towards their door caused a brief moment of panic. They hastily wiped their mouth and soulmask with the back of their voidblack hand before looking around. They quickly found a rather fancy cushion on the couch, and tossed in into the corner over the black stain before scrambling into bed and nestling under the covers, to give the impression of being asleep. They knew those steps; Father, the Pale King. The last one they wanted to see them like this. Especially not just one day before they were meant to save the entire kingdom.

They heard their door creak open, and the delicate steps of the Wyrm making his way towards their bed. They just hoped the Pale King didn’t notice the cushion in a strange place. Or that they never put their armor up on the stand.

The Pale King wasn’t supposed to become attached. Especially not to something that wasn’t even supposed to feel anything towards him. And yet… he did. Each day closer to the time of the Sealing, it weighed heavier and heavier on his mind. Tomorrow, the Hollow Knight would be sealed in the Black Egg Temple, never to be seen again. That was what brought the Pale King into the Hollow Knight’s bedchamber. To see it comfortably at home one last time before the ceremony. He paused, for a moment, watching the Vessel as it lay silent and unmoving in its bed, regal, beautiful… the Kingdom’s savior and last hope. The ache in his chest was almost palpable. He finally walked to the side of the bed, simply looking down, studying the Vessel in silence. It was only one more night, what would it hurt? He finally reached out one hand, so white it glowed softly, and gently ran it over the Vessel’s brow, along their horn, then down to where their cheek would be. It took all the restraint they had not to lean into the touch they hadn't even realized they craved so terribly until this moment.

“I know you won’t hear this. Or even understand it.” The Pale King said, finally letting himself be vulnerable when he thought nobody was watching, sounding as tired and hollow as the Hollow Knight itself was supposed to be. “I wish things could have been different. I wish you could feel about me the way I feel about you. I almost wish there was something behind those blank eyes of yours, so that I could just call this whole thing off and start over again.”

He took a deep breath, his hand still lingering there on the cold, smooth surface of the Hollow Knight’s soulmask, for several long moments. Time seemed to stand still. The Vessel didn’t want it to end.

_But I do feel, Father… I really do, but I dare not show you. I must make you proud… I must save the kingdom._

The Pale King let out another sigh, before whispering “No Cost Too Great” to himself softly. A mantra that had all but lost its meaning in the years it had taken to finally successfully create the Pure Vessel, and the years it took for it to grow from a tiny nymph to the tall, regal thing it was now.

When his hand withdrew and he walked back out of the room and closed the door behind him, it took all of the Hollow Knight’s restraint not to go after him. Despite everything, a rough childhood of never being allowed to show any emotion, never being shown any affection, being the perfect figure that was the hope of a kingdom, they couldn’t stop themself from growing attached. From coming to love their parent. From doing the very thing they were not supposed to do; Feel. Think. Hope. _Dream._

\-------------------------

Morning came. The Vessel didn’t want it to, but it did anyway. Time always marches on, after all. They finally sighed, picking up their armor and rumpled cloak from the floor. They shook their cloak out, placed it on, and put their armor on next. They had to make a striking appearance when they went into the Black Egg. The anxieties of the night had worn on into tired acceptance by morning. They tried not to think about it as two royal retainers were sent to fetch them. They continued to push it out of their mind as they joined the procession of royalty and high society figures making their way to the ever looming Black Egg Temple.

 _Don’t think. Don’t feel. Be the perfect vessel you need to be._ they told themself time and time again, until it became a mantra every bit as much as the Pale King’s "No Cost Too Great" mantra. It helped, until they stepped through the door into the temple itself. The Pale King was by their side, as the chanting began, as the magic was woven from Weaver silk and thrumming song. As the Dreamers slowly fell into a deep sleep. As the Black Egg itself opened, so they could go in and leave everybody else behind. They didn’t look back. They couldn’t look back. They couldn’t show anything.

One foot in front of the other. The jarring sound of stone grinding, the deep crunch of the Black Egg sealing itself shut behind them made it sink in all the more just how final this was. They wanted to call out, to beg their father to stop this, let them out, find another way, but they had no voice. They walked to the center of the space within the Black Egg in grim acceptance as the chains surrounded them, lifted them up, and locked them in place. The burn of the Radiance being directed into them, filling them completely. They focused on keeping it in, surrounding it with the Void within them. Containing the Infection as they were meant to do.

\---------------------------------

By the time the ritual was concluded… it was night. And it would remain night in Hallownest for the rest of time, to stop the Radiance’s light from returning. The Pale King lingered for a moment beside the Temple of the Black Egg, longer than he probably should have, his white hand touching the dark surface, tracing the glimmering marks of binding, before going back to the White Palace. 

Despite warning himself that he shouldn't, the Pale King found himself walking to the Vessel’s bedchamber once again. He opened the door and sat on the edge of the empty bed, looking at the spot where it usually slept, deep in thought, before he let out a sigh.

“What’s done is done. The Kingdom is safe. The Radiance contained, the Infection gone.” He said aloud, though his voice was heard by nobody. Something, though, caught his eye. A misplaced cushion, laying on the floor in the corner as if tossed there. Normally, he wouldn’t have thought twice, but everything in this room was always kept in perfect order. Even more odd, he thought he saw a few void particles rising from around it. He decided he didn’t want to just leave it there, so he picked it up to put it back where it belonged… before he froze. 

The cushion, and the carpet were both stained black. He knew some bugs ended up sick to the stomach when stressed or frightened; something holding over to their primitive ancestors. This wouldn’t have been considered odd, if it had been anybody else. But coming from the Hollow Knight....

He felt a rush like ice down his spine as the implications of what he’d found hit him with a sudden realization.

The Pure Vessel had not only thrown up in the corner of its bedchamber… _it had tried to hide it, too._

The words of the Beast of the Abyss back when he had first selected the Hollow Knight rang in his mind, a clear memory.

_When you give something life… it will never remain hollow. Life exists to grow, to learn, to become. Even if that poor child manages to survive your brutal test, it will never be truly hollow. In the end, it will fail. It will be overcome. You can not hope to contain the Radiance in this manner._

The Hollow Knight… Wasn’t so hollow after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this AU, in case it isn't clear yet, the Hollow Knight is high-functioning autistic. This is what caused them to be mistaken as truly hollow, as autistic people (I know from personal experience, I fall into the autism spectrum) have a hard time both reading and showing emotion, become overstimulated in crowds, and often have anxiety as well.


End file.
